Selected Ambient Works takes place at night. A time when the principle of competition has let up for a moment, and when the city’s outsiders can finally breathe.

(1) Through binoculars a girl watches vehicles silently collide. Expressionless passengers sent through air and glass. (2) A single road lit amber twists deep into the countryside. Two children asleep in the back seat. (3) A great turquoise marble gradually coiling through space. From here it is easier to see that we are all the same. (4) Adventurous youths duck as a patrol car goes by. Nearby curtains twitch with interest. (5) The pearlescent geography of heaven. (6) Gang members like ants marking their territory with paint. In a nearby warehouse, machines operate without human supervision. (7) Families watch from behind glass as something incredible is born amid the stars. (8) A convoy of amusing vehicles slowly make their way from one side of the city to the other. (9) Unheard sadness enclosed within four walls. But I’d rather that than be out there. (10) Identical workers operate in synch as they restock a vast hardware store. Commodities passed down a chain of nodding men. (11) Shadows warp and elongate around a balled figure. Not the first time he has disregarded his medication. (12) Surveillance equipment peppering a network of roads. An unseen figure quietly observes. (13) Trainers squeaking down a lifeless corridor. Rain spattering against glass. Outside, traffic gathers in agitated clusters.